


if the moon falls down tonight

by earlgrey_milktea



Series: milktea's saso2017 fills [6]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe, Celestial Beings AU, First Meetings, M/M, Supernatural Elements, influenced by japanese mythology
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-01
Packaged: 2018-11-07 19:39:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11065749
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/earlgrey_milktea/pseuds/earlgrey_milktea
Summary: The legends said that the light of the moon and stars was locked in an eternal struggle against the dark of the night. The legends also said that when they were weakened, the deities of light would sometimes fall to earth. Daichi never put much stock in the legends, but when he's out one night in the dark of the new moon, he stumbles across what he's almost certain is a moon deity.





	if the moon falls down tonight

**Author's Note:**

> original prompt thread [here](http://sportsanime.dreamwidth.org/21522.html?thread=10097426#cmt10097426)
> 
> the beginning is from the prompt itself; i was also pleasantly surprised when i did a little reading on japanese shinto mythology and learned that their moon deity was male.

_ The legends said that the light of the moon and the stars were locked in an eternal struggle against the dark of the night. The legends also said that when they were weakened, the deities of light would sometimes fall to earth.  _

Daichi has never believed in such myths. He sees the stars and the moon every night from his window, and never once have they failed him. If they truly were fighting a war, Daichi can only believe that they were winning.

Until he looks out the window one night, and sees stars falling. Thousands and thousands of stars streak across the velvet sky, endless and breathtaking as it is terrifying. Daichi drops the soup ladle in his hands, not even pausing to put on his cloak before stepping outside, mouth agape.

The moon is nowhere to be found. 

Suddenly, a flash of bright light, much much brighter than the other falling stars, soar past above Daichi’s cottage. He ducks on instinct, but the light flies on, until it lands somewhere just beyond the trees lining his home. Even where he stands, Daichi can feel the earth quaking with the impact. 

It’s quiet, and then the night dims, enough that Daichi finds himself squinting to see his own front door. He pauses long enough to light a lantern, and then sets off into the woods.

He doesn’t know how long he walks. The night seems to darken as he goes. Daichi knows these woods like the back of his hand, but even he can’t help the shiver of apprehension at how silent and still everything is. Not even the squirrels are around. Maybe he should have stayed away.

But then, Daichi spots something glowing softly through the trees. It pulsates like fireflies, but summer has long since passed and this glow seems to grow weaker as he approaches. He lifts his lantern high as he steps through the foliage, and gasps.

Curled up against the trunk of a tree is the form a human boy, not much younger than Daichi himself. The being is completely doused in silver, from the curls of its hair to the long robes it’s wearing to the paleness of its skin. Its eyes are closed and even from this distance Daichi can hear the pained stutter of its breathing. Daichi has never seen a sight more breathtaking and more frightening.

“Hello?” he says, taking another step forwards. 

Gold eyes snap open, pinning Daichi to his spot, and the silvery glow seems to increase in intensity, until the being determines that Daichi isn’t a real threat. It hasn’t moved from its spot by the tree. Daichi watches the gold in its eyes fade until it’s more of a warm brown.

“Sorry to startle you,” Daichi says when he can breathe again. “I just... I saw you falling. And I live around here, so I thought... Are you alright?”

The ethereal being stares at him for a few moments. Daichi doesn’t dare move. Then, the spirit tilts its head. When it speaks, the voice is hushed, almost gentle, and reminds Daichi of quiet evenings by his hearth. “What’s your name?”

“Daichi.”

“Daichi,” the spirit says. “And what are you?”

“I’m... just a hunter.”

“You live in these woods alone, Daichi the hunter?”

Daichi nods. He glances away for the first time since he stepped into the clearing. “There’s a village closeby, but I don’t really... I prefer being on my own.”

Silver locks fall into brown eyes as the spirit tilts its head. “Daichi,” it says, and Daichi watches as it slowly lifts its hands away, revealing something dark burned into the exposed skin under ripped robes. A battle wound. “Do you know what I am?”

Daichi opens his mouth to answer, and then closes it. He bows slightly. “Tsukiyomi-no-mikoto,” he says softly.

The spirit smiles, and something quivers in the space behind Daichi’s ribcage. He’s suddenly overcome with something that feels familiar as fear, and yet exhilarating as the thrill when he successfully completes a hunt. 

“Daichi the hunter,” the moon deity says, “take me home.”

**Author's Note:**

> come talk to me @puddingcatbae on tumblr or twitter!!


End file.
